Welcome to the inaugural edition of RPL in Nova Scotia: Here to Stay!
Participants in 2024's successful RPL Forum made it clear they wanted more. As a result, we're launching this quarterly newsletter dedicated to exploring, celebrating, and advancing the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).
Whether you're deeply involved in RPL or just beginning to discover its power, this newsletter is your gateway to engaging stories, insightful interviews, articles, and updates on exciting projects. Our goal is to bring RPL to life, as a vibrant, evolving practice with real impact on learners, professionals, and communities.
While we proudly shine a spotlight on the incredible work happening right here in Nova Scotia, we’ll also take you across Canada and around the world to highlight innovative RPL initiatives, policies, and best practices. We aim to foster a shared understanding of the many ways RPL contributes to lifelong learning, workforce development, and equity in education. So—welcome aboard! We invite you to join us on this journey as we unpack the many dimensions of RPL. Your contributions and ideas are encouraged (our contact information is below). Please feel free to share this newsletter with your networks.
|
|
|
|
RPL Spotlight: Susan Forseille
In August, I was honoured to be invited to contribute to the inaugural NSCDA newsletter. NSCDA is widely recognized across Canada as a leader in career development, and I was asked to share my perspective on the connection between Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) and career development, a topic close to my heart. Before becoming Director of PLAR at Thompson Rivers University in 2018, I spent over 20 years as a career educator, seeing this connection from both sides.
At its core, RPL directly shapes how individuals advance, shift, or strengthen their careers. But the deeper, often overlooked connection lies in the process itself: guiding people to uncover and articulate the skills, values, and knowledges they already possess. This process is both challenging and transformative. In career development, this guidance supports career decision-making and job search strategies. In RPL, it is essential for portfolio building and learning assessments. What makes it difficult? The demanding work of self-reflection, the influence of cultural and societal expectations, and the crucial roles of confidence and agency.
Self-reflection requires vulnerability and self-awareness but is vital for making sound career choices and for articulating learning. Cultural and societal factors shape which careers are seen as desirable, how individuals express their skills, and whether experiential learning is valued. Too often, non-formal and informal learning is overlooked by employers and educators alike. Confidence and agency empower individuals to recognize their own worth, articulate prior learning, and take ownership of their career paths.
Career development and RPL practitioners have shared priorities, to support individuals in surfacing, reflecting, and sharing what they already know, helping them move forward with confidence and efficiency. In addition, career development practitioners guide individuals in creating personalized and fulfilling career pathing.
At times this can be difficult as cultural and societal factors imped understanding and progress. I propose we celebrate the connections we have in our work and intentionally share our teachings with one another. This will enhance the transformative impact we have on the individuals we work with, reducing barriers, fostering empowerment, and strengthen the bridge between education and the world of work.
A few links, in case you want to explore a bit more (and work I am particularly proud of):
Exploring the Impact of PLAR on Career Development CAPLA (Canadian Association of Prior Learning and Assessment, 2025)
Prior Learning, Unlocking a Little Known Super Power, CERIC (Canadian Education and Research Institute for Counselling, 2021)
PLAR Persistence, A Canadian Post-Secondary Comparison, PLAIO (Prior Learning Assessment Inside Out Journal, 2023)
The Significant Role PLAR Can Play in Career Development, BCPLAN (BC Prior Learning Action Network, 2021)
Decolonizing and Indigenizing PLAR at TRU, CAPLA (Canadian Association of Prior Learning and Assessment, 2025)
What Can We Learn From the Lived Experience of a Student, CACEE (2011) |
|
| |
|
Check out the NSCDA's RPL video! This two minute video was developed to introduce the power of Recognizing Learning. |
|
|
|
Learner Success Story: Daisy Ann Ancheta |
|
|
|
|
"Make a Difference"
“Make a difference.” This is my daily affirmation. Back in The Philippines, I worked as a Jail Nurse for ten consecutive years. There, I witnessed different versions of reality, from doomed hopes to silent cries, sleepless nights, poverty and even death itself. Realizations came to my mind. What if everyone will make a difference in their own little way and take actions? This world would be a better place to live in. So as a Nurse, I attend to each inmate’s medical needs with respect. I removed the connotation that they are “just prisoners” instead I made sure that they are treated as a person who is in need of medical attention.
Also, I was able to work with the International Committee of The Red Cross (ICRC) where we got the chance to be heard. As a result of dedication, we are offered additional support to further enhance the living situations of our inmates and also to improve the Prison itself to better cater sick inmates which is until now being productively used.
In 2021, I came to Canada and studied Personal Support Worker in Algonquin College in Ottawa, Ontario. After graduation, I decided to transfer here to Nova Scotia. I worked as a Continuing Care Assistant in Cedarstone Enhanced Care- Shannex. I learned about the opportunity to have my experience and learning recognized through the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) program and earn my Continuing Care Assistant Certification.
I grabbed the opportunity to further enhance my understanding and dig deeper to connect not only with our elders but also to each person needing care in the facility. As a result, I was able to showcase the knowledge, share experience and expand my understanding on how personalized care should be implemented to each resident because they are different individuals before they are housed in facilities. Also, I realized that it is not what “I” have done, but how “we” side by side did it together with the resident and The Whole Care Staff that made the difference. I was able to continue my pathway to achieve my Registered Nurse designation.
At present, I work as a Registered Nurse in Colchester East Hants Health Centre. Thanks to the RPL program, it opens lots of doors for opportunities. I am now not only able to give basic care but also able to medically attend again to each person from all walks of life. DAISY ANN ANCHETA - Registered Nurse & Certified CCA |
|
|
|
EMPOWERED: The Portfolio Career
In 2025 the NSCDA launched our fully updated and revised portfolio development program: EMPOWERED: The Portfolio Career. EMPOWERED is a 7-session program that leads participants through a structured reflective and skill-building process. Outcomes include a portfolio ‘product’ of the client’s choosing and the development of a portfolio mindset.
Goals of the EMPOWERED process include enhanced job search and career mobility skills, and personal growth. Facilitators guide participants in mining their life and work experiences to reveal knowledge, skills and competencies - what they know and can do. They use this new self-understanding to set goals and look to the future, better prepared to adapt, engage and transition with confidence and intention.
Ten EMPOWERED: The Portfolio Career facilitators were trained in the winter of 2025. Facilitator training mirrored the portfolio development program, with participants completing the 7 sessions plus a facilitator orientation session. Congratulations to our 10 graduates: - Holly Rye
-
Stephanie Peach
- Lisa Strong
- Candace Serroul
- Reshmu George
- Kimberly Field
- Leah Vidito
- Lisa Noonan
- Maria Viniegra
- Michelle Landry
The next offering of Facilitator Training will begin in January 2026. Further information will be shared in the NSCDA’s member newsletter. |
|
|
|
|
Celebrating 20 Years of Boat Builder Certification |
|
|
|
About twenty years ago, Joe Dicks received his Boat Builder certification. He was the first Nova Scotian certified when the trade was designated in 2005. It takes about 5,400 hours to become certified, usually completed in about three years of full-time work. For boatbuilders who already have skills and experience, there is another way to accomplish recognition of prior learning (RPL): Trade Qualification, where knowledge is demonstrated and evaluated. When the Boat Builder trade was introduced, it was a perfect way for experienced builders like Joe to become certified and pass on their skills to the first Boat Builder apprentices. Since then, 90 Boat Builder certifications and 32 Marine Service Technician certifications have been awarded through the RPL method.
Nova Scotia’s Boat Builder apprenticeship program is based on an internationally recognized curriculum, New Zealand’s Marine and Specialized Technologies Academy. The various skills an apprentice needs to demonstrate are taught, then observed and signed off by a qualified mentor. Apprentices can specialize in one of three materials: wood, metal or composites such as fibre-reinforced plastic. Becoming an apprentice starts with getting hired by a boatyard that has a journeyperson Boat Builder who is willing to be a mentor.
Now, twenty years on from Joe Dicks’ certification, another boat builder has joined the ranks. Ed Sturgeon got his start in carpentry and worked in lots of different capacities before developing an interest in traditional wood boats. Lately he has been working at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, running workshops with different youth groups among the historical boats crowding the small dockside shop. He hopes to work in a new building coming soon that will make space for more projects and workshops on the Halifax Waterfront. The climate-smart facility, once finished, will be the new Halifax Boat School, providing opportunities for youth from diverse communities to learn about the traditional practice of boat building. The trade will live on!
|
|
|
|
|
The Iceberg Metaphor
Picture an iceberg – awesome, majestic, standing tall above the waterline. Amazingly, what we can see of an iceberg is only about 10% of it; the remaining 90% lies beneath the water’s surface.
So it is with our learning. What we (and the world) can see is the evidence of our formal, credentialed learning – the diplomas or degrees we’ve earned, the certificates from professional development programs. That’s the 10 percent of the iceberg that’s visible. The remainder – the vast, submerged portion of the iceberg - represents the other 90%, the often unacknowledged skills, knowledge and competencies acquired through work, volunteering, family life and the experiences of everyday living.
The Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) helps us bring our learning to the surface, making it visible to ourselves, to employers, and to academic and regulatory bodies. RPL reveals what we know and can do, opening up possibilities that will benefit individuals, workplaces, communities and the economy. |
|
|
|
The Dylan Plant: Lessons in Growth, Patience, and Hope
In this episode of From the Field, the NSCDA's podcast series, Training Manager Connie Corse sits down with Teresa Francis to explore the power of reflection and the unexpected ways learning shows up in our lives. Through Teresa’s touching story of a resilient houseplant that bloomed after twenty years, they uncover deep lessons about growth, timing, and the human capacity for renewal.
Together, they draw parallels between nurturing a plant and guiding clients through their own career transitions, reminding us that with the right conditions, a little hope, and patience, potential can flourish at any time. Check out this 10 minute podcast at the link below:
https://nscda.podbean.com/e/episode-7-the-dylan-plant-lessons-in-growth-patience-and-hope/ |
|
| |
|
Why RPL? The Benefit of RPL: Lisa Strong
What exactly is RPL (Recognition of Prior Learning) or PLAR (Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition)? Have you encountered these concepts before or explored this dynamic and evolving field? Personally, I’ve found the journey incredibly rewarding. Learning alongside the RPL experts, participating in the NSCDA’s RPL Forum and completing the RPL Badge course offered by the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning in Dublin, Ireland, deepened my appreciation for the idea that RPL values “what you know and can do, regardless of where or how that learning took place.”
Immersing myself in the world of RPL has expanded my knowledge and strengthened my competencies in ways that directly enhance my work in Career Development. RPL benefits learners by recognizing their existing knowledge, skills, and competencies—an empowering process that opens new pathways for education, employment, and personal growth. This experience has reminded me of my roots as an educator and the vital role teachers play in acknowledging learning that happens beyond traditional classrooms—through work, volunteering, and life. Recognizing that learning can occur anywhere affirms people’s growth and broadens opportunity.
In today’s rapidly changing world, where employers face skills shortages and individuals seek new opportunities without formal credentials, RPL serves as a bridge between untapped talent and unmet needs. It validates real-world expertise and expands access to possibilities that might otherwise remain closed. Too often, people are expected to fit rigid systems that overlook their lived experience. RPL shifts that narrative. It tells individuals: What you’ve done matters. What you know counts. When we invest in RPL, we invest in people. We say yes to equity, yes to opportunity, and yes to the belief that learning happens everywhere. Fostering these opportunities isn’t just rewarding—it’s essential. |
|
|
|
Additional Resources Interested in learning more about RPL? Check out the links below: |
|
|
|
Interested in contributing? If you would like to contribute to our next newsletter, please reach out to either:
Teresa Francis - tftrancis@nscda.ca Director of Learning & Professional Practice - NSCDA Lisa Strong - lstrong@nscda.ca Career Services Specialist - NSCDA |
|
|
|
|
The trusted voice for the career development community since the late 1990s. Offering professional certification, training based on competencies, special membership benefits, and opportunities to get involved in research, networking, and advocacy. |
|
|
|
|
